Tool support



June 15, 1937. G. E. MIRFIELD TOOL SUPPORT 2 Sheng-sheet 1 Filed July 5, 1935 MMI June 15, 1937. G. E. MIRFIELD TOOL SUPPORT Filed July 5, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ',.Flfg.4.

Patented June 15, 1937 UNETED STATES li'iENT OFFICE TOOL SUPPORT Application July 5, 1935, Serial No. 29,906

6 Claims.

My invention relates to an adjustable support for a turning tool, and, in particular, a support for a tool adapted to work on a member adapted to have rotary movement in operation, specifical- Y ly, an electrode roll of an electric welder.

While it has been proposed heretofore to maintain the contour of welding electrodes by dressing with a suitable tool, no such device with' which I am familiar is suitable for use in connection with the welding apparatus described and claimed in my co-pending application Serial No. 712,917 filed February 26, 1934. The apparatus described therein includes electrode rolls mounted for rotation aboutspaced vertical aXes and designed to y'engage the Work over a rather wide Zone. The resulting conguration of the electrode surface which engages the Work is suc-h that no known tool support could be employed for holding and moving a tool in engagement with such surface.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a tool support adapted to be secured to the frame of the Welder and capable of shifting the tool in a predetermined path required to conform to the contour of the electrode.

standing of the invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating a present preferred embodiment, although it is to be understood that changes in the construction described and illustrated may be made within the 30. scope of my broader claims. In the drawings- Figure l is a partial side elevation of a Welder as described and claimed in my co-pending application, having the invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the tool support to enlarged scale;

Figure 3 is a plan view showing the Welder frame in section; and

Figure 4 is an end view.

Referring now in detail to they drawings, and

for the moment to Figure 1 in particular, the Welder includes electrodes I0 and pressure rolls II defining a welding throat having the shape of the work to be welded, in this case pipes and tubes. The electrodes I0 are mounted for rotation in bearings I2 depending from a sup-porting frame including columns l 3 and a transom I li. The pressure rolls I I are similarly mounted in bearings I5 carried in the base member I6 slidable on rails I1. As will be apparent from Figure 1, the axes of the electrodes and pressure rolls are not in alignment. extend outwardly beyond the periphery of the electrode rolls, imposing rather severe space limitations upon any construction of tool adapted to engage the electrode, and the support therefor.

For a complete under- The pressure rolls thus Turning now to Figures 2 through 4 for a detailed description of the invention proper, which is illustrated in Figure 1 in relation to the Welder itself, the tool support is carried on an angle bracket 20. The bracket 20 is slidable vertically on a base plate 2l by means of a cooperating tongue and groove 22. The plate 2l is secured to the flange of the column I3 by bolts 23.

The portion of the angle bracket 20 indicated at 20a engaging the base plate 2 I, is slotted to receive the bolts 23 so as to permit vertical adjustment of the bracket on the plate. When the adjustment has been made, the bolts are tight.- ened down. The plate 2l has a projection 24 through which is threaded an adjusting screw 25 adapted to engage and temporarily support the bracket 2li for vertical adjustment thereof.

The portion of the bracket 20 extending at an angle to the flange on the column I3, indicated at 20h, is provided with an inclined groove 26. A plate 21 is secured to the face 2Gb of the bracket 20 by bolts 28 and has a tongue 21a entering the groove 26 and cooperating therewith to guide sliding movement of the plate 21 on the face 20h. The latter has slots 28 for receiving the bolts 28, whereby the plate 21 can be clamped to the face 20h after the desired adjustment thereof. The slots, of course, extend parallel to the groove 26. The inclination of the groove 26 and the slots from the vertical provides lateral movement of the plate 21 as well as Vertical adjustment thereof, to bring the turning tool, to be described later, into the desired relation with the work represented by the curved surface 30 of the electrode l0.

The plate 21 is provided with vertical Ways 3l in which a slide 32 is reciprocable. The slide 32 has al dovetail 33 cooperating with similarly shaped portions of the guides 3|. The slide 32 has horizontal Ways 34 formed thereon. A transverse slide 35 is reciprocable along these ways. A feed screw 36 is journalled in a' thrust bearing 31 carried at one end of the slide 32 and is threaded into a block 38 having a projection 39 by which it is keyed into the slide 35. The block 38 moves in a groove 40 between the Ways 34.

The slide 35 has projections 4I extending upwardly and downwardly therefrom. Rolls 42 are journalled in these projections for engagement with cams 43 carried on the plate 21. The cams 43 are adjustably secured to blocks 4 extending outwardly from the plate 21.

The slide 35 also carries a tool clamp 45 provided With clamping screws 46, whereby a turning tool such as that indicated at 41, may be of the electrode.

' thatthe tool engages th-e surface 30 at one extremity or the other and then, by operation of the screw 3S, the tool is caused to traverse the entire width of the surface.

-V It will be apparent from theforegoing description that the invention provides a simple yet effective'means of either turning off a portion of the electrode surface or simplyV removing accre-V tions ofV material Which are deposited thereon* during the Welding operation. In either case, the tool is caused to follow the contour of the work with great accuracy so thatl the contour originally existing is preserved throughout theV life As the electrode surface wears or is turned off, of course, the Ytool is adjusted upwardly by means of the plate 21.

It will be apparentthat an electrode trimming device in accordance With my invention may be mounted for cooperation with each ofthe elec-v trodes lll of the Welder shown in Figure 1.( Since the tool supports are mounted on the Ycolumns I3, theyv do not constitute any obstruction to the movement of Work through the Welder or to easy accessibility to the working parts of the latten.

Although I have illustrated and described but one preferred embodiment ofthe invention, it will be apparent that numerous changes therein may be made. Without departing Vfrom the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims. 1 Y Y I claim: Y f Y Y Yl. A tool holder comprising a base plate, a slide freely movable longitudinally thereof, a second slide carried on the first and movable transversely therealong, a tool holder carried by the' second slide, cooperating means on said slides movement of both slideson movement of said one of said slides.

Such movement of Y 2. A tool holder comprising a base plate, a tool holding slide, a supplementary supporting'fslide mounted on said base plate for movement therealong, the tool holding Vslide being mounted on the supplementary slide for movement thereon at an angle to the path of movement of said supplementary slide, means forV shifting the 'tool holding slide relative to said supplementary slide, and cooperating cam means on theV tool holding slide and the base plate for effecting movement of both slides on transverse movement of they tool holding slide relative to the supplementary slide. Y

3. A tool holder comprising a base plate disf posed substantially vertically, a compound 'slide mounted thereon having members movable vertically and horizontally, means for moving the horizontally movable member along the verti-v cally movable member, and cooperating cam means on the plate and the horizontally movable member for effecting vertical movement of both said membersron movement of the horizontally rst slide is movable, on movement of the second Y `slide relative to the first.

5. In a tool holder, a base, a slide movable therealong in a predetermined path,a second slide mounted on the rst for movement in a path at an angle to said Vrst mentioned path, co-V operating means on said slide for effecting relative movement therebetween, and cooperating means on the second slide and said base effective to move both slides on such relative movement.

6. A tool holder comprising a base, a slide movable on the base, a second slide movable on -the rst in a direction at an angle to the di-` rection of movement of the rst mentioned slide,

means on the base and the second slide effective to move the rst mentioned slide in its path on relative movement between the two slides, and means for moving one slide relative to the other.`

GEORGE VE. MIRFIELD. 

